Captain Winter and his 101st Company arrived as reinforcements aboard a “Wahou 211” assault landing ship. As we've mentioned before, this is a small warship used for boarding and orbital assaults, ranked alongside assault ships as the smallest of all types of spacecraft, and naturally, it lacks orbital bombardment capabilities.
Therefore, since the start of the war, the Wahou 211 had been waiting in New Yumen's low-Earth orbit, serving only as a reconnaissance satellite, and not a very professional one at that.
The crew had initially thought they would be the safest group in this conflict and were somewhat negligent. So, when three non-friendly warships appeared within radar range, they were naturally scared out of their wits.
Their reaction was already a bit slow. One must know that space warfare is a two-way street; if you discover the enemy, the enemy will naturally discover you. Thinking of this, many young crew members who had never participated in actual combat turned pale with fright.
Fortunately, the enemy did not seem to be preparing to attack; they merely activated their shields and main gun turrets and continued to advance.
“Cap… Captain, what should we do…?” This time, the crew was even more flustered. They recognized that all three were destroyers, three times or more the size and tonnage of their own ship, and their firepower was more than ten times stronger.
Lieutenant Jeff, the Captain, saw things more clearly, recognizing all three as Imperial-designed “Apocalypse Eagle” class destroyers. This type of warship is extremely versatile, and the Empire has even opened up construction rights to its allies and vassal states. Looking at the paint and insignia of those ships, they should belong to the Ketai Kingdom Space Fleet.
The Captain took several deep breaths, trying to calm his wildly beating heart, and said in a deep voice, “Send a message to the other party: This is Blue Star Commonwealth territory! This is Blue Star Commonwealth territory! The other party has approached a populated planet’s low-Earth orbit and can be considered an act of invasion!”
The communications officer, with a mournful face, began calling out several times, but then replied with an even more mournful face, “Captain, the other party says they belong to the Ketai Kingdom Space Fleet and are… are here to carry out an evacuation mission…”
“Ev… evacuation? Nonsense, this is a blatant act of aggression!” Lieutenant Jeff was furious. “Continue calling, and also, connect me to Captain Winter on the ground!”
“Um, Captain, what if they don’t respond after three calls? According to naval regulations, we can open fire!”
The Captain glared fiercely at the other party, thinking, “You don’t even look at the three gaping orbital cannons on their ships. Can our few close-in defense guns on this ship possibly win?” Oh, right, as an assault ship, if it’s useless at everything else, it’s still tough-headed; it could charge in for a ramming tactic. But the problem is, ramming is for boarding, and all our Marines are on that yellowish planet below!
“Captain, Captain Winter is connected. Uh, good, yes! Captain, Lieutenant Colonel Bonaparte wants to speak with you.”
Lieutenant Jeff was slightly stunned and quickly took the communicator, hearing a young, pleasant, yet very powerful female voice from it: “Captain Jeff? Enemy fleet size and type?”
She really is a decisive lady! The Lieutenant thought as he said, “Three destroyers, they are the Ketai Kingdom’s Sea Cat Type 2 destroyers.”
“Oh, the one modified from the Apocalypse Eagle, with added orbital cannons and electromagnetic torpedoes?”
“Yes, Commander!” This lady is an expert!
“Alright, you can temporarily disengage from their firing range and just continue to maintain surveillance!”
Lieutenant Jeff let out a long breath. As long as they weren’t forced to directly confront the enemy, he was extremely grateful, and this wasn’t desertion but a Commander’s order. Thinking of this, the Captain wished he could worship the understanding Lieutenant Colonel as his great-grandmother.
“Yes… yes, Commander… Uh, also, Commander, please don’t worry, the main fleet from the garrison will arrive in at most one day.”
“I know.” On the ground, Elinore disconnected from the Captain and clapped her hands, addressing everyone, “Did you all hear that? Then get ready quickly.”
Ready for what? Some people hadn't even had time to ask this question. Yu Lian had already run to the command vehicle, holding his gun and shouting, “All units, elevate angle by 40 degrees, switch to anti-air mode!” Seeing the goblins busy themselves again, scared by him, he then said to Elinore, “Commander, we also need the cooperation of the Tulon Port’s fortress gun aiming array!”
Elinore nodded and instructed her arm communication terminal, “Share the aiming array’s view with Warrant Officer Yu Lian. His mech’s communication code is…”
“AF4892W!” Yu Lian added.
“Did you hear that? Also, connect me to the Starport control tower, hail the Ketai Fleet Commander!”
“Lieutenant Colonel, Governor Yamadera wishes to speak with you.”
Elinore directly ignored the last sentence and then said to Captain Winter beside her, “Captain, as you can see, a Artillery Battle might occur soon. I need your men to enter the city via airship first.”
Since it was a Artillery Battle, these elite Marines of the 101st Company wouldn't be much help. Captain Winter nodded calmly, “Is there anything you need us to do?”
“Protect Governor Yamadera in the Governor's Office, and also, blockade the Starport and impound a cargo ship named Snow Swallow. Protect the crew on board, especially their representative, Mr. Chuck Brown!” At this point, Elinore paused and then added, “Oh, and the Snow Swallow is the property of the Imperial Canaan Chamber of Commerce, and Mr. Brown might be a vassal of an Elector King!”
Captain Winter was silent for a few seconds, a bitter smile appearing at the corner of his mouth, but he said solemnly with a heavy and firm attitude, “Understood! Please rest assured!”
Elinore pondered for a moment, then said with unprecedented solemnity, “Thank you! Please rest assured, I will bear all the consequences.”
Yu Lian watched from the side with considerable emotion.
In the history of another timeline, the senior student unexpectedly fell into a coma, and the Tulon garrison, which had just defeated the Sand People’s main force, instantly lost its backbone. The Tulon security force was even less likely to obey Captain Winter and their orders. So, Governor Yamadera, who had been hiding safely in the Governor's Office throughout the entire conflict, jumped out again to make his presence felt. After a series of chaotic maneuvers, he actually allowed the Ketai people to land three warships on the inner lake, which was equivalent to landing on Commonwealth territory.
The situation afterward naturally became even more complicated.
But now, with the lively senior student, everything was different. While we must criticize the hero-centric view of history, we must also acknowledge the role of heroes in advancing history, so as not to fall into the trap of mechanical materialism…
“Captain, be careful of that Brown. He might be a mental awakened. When arresting, ah no, protecting him, you can have everyone play some music in their headsets. Oh, and to prevent him from accidentally biting his tongue, it’s best to provide some protection for him throughout the entire process.” Yu Lian added.
Captain Winter, the epitome of a wise and brave handsome uncle, was slightly stunned, then returned a greasy smile that only men would understand.
Elinore snorted unhappily, “Yuli, I believe you said you have an awakened among your subordinates, correct?”
Yu Lian took a second to realize she was calling him and quickly replied, “Yes, Sergeant Major Ina Hilika. She has become a First Ring ‘Sentinel,’ and in the future, she might become…”
“In short, she’s a bit like an archer in a game, right?”
“Uh, that’s certainly one way to put it. But she’s more like a hunter, since she also has trap-setting skills…”
“Have her report here!”
The senior student then ordered into the terminal, “Shut down the city shields, and planetary fortress cannons begin charging! Also, what’s going on with the control tower! Connect me to the other party immediately!”
After Captain Winter and his men left, Ina also arrived at Alqi Highlands. Elinore sized up the neat and bright, pretty short-haired girl. Just as she was about to greet (or intimidate) her, she received a response from the control tower and motioned with her eyes for Ina to connect with Yu Lian, while she herself opened communications.
In Elinore’s view, a translucent light screen popped up, showing the image of a black-furred Ketai naval officer. At first glance, he looked like a fierce-looking black-furred gorilla.
“I am Colonel Mo Xu, Captain of Hellcat 12, belonging to the Ketai Royal Navy, and also the person in charge of this evacuation operation! Let your esteemed party know that we are here solely to protect the safety of our citizens and the welfare of all Milky Way Civilization social citizens, and we have no hostile intentions whatsoever! We hope your esteemed party does not misunderstand!”
“We have not received any diplomatic note! Your actions, according to Galactic Public Law, are an out-and-out act of aggression! Our side reserves the sacred and inviolable right of self-defense! Please leave immediately!”
“We received an invitation from your Governor.”
“Oh, really?”
“No, no, absolutely not!” Another display screen popped up in the view, showing a sweating Governor Yamadera.
Well, the private chat turned into a group chat.
Elinore rolled her eyes, thinking, “Who on earth added this guy? When this incident is over, I’m going to line up and shoot every single person in the communication hub.”
“I, I, Lieutenant Colonel Bonaparte, I need to be responsible for the more than 700,000 Commonwealth citizens of New Yumen. You can understand, right? You must understand me.”
“So you don’t believe we will win, and that’s why you unilaterally invited foreign military forces into our territory? Heh, I didn’t know the Governor’s Office had that authority.”
“Oh, it’s… Oh dear, you’ve already won, why dwell on the Past? We must look to the Present! Um, right, Colonel Mo Xu, isn’t it? As you can see, we have already won. So, there’s no need to trouble your esteemed party. Therefore, this is our territory, isn’t it? It’s not a good look to just come in like this! Really not a good look!”
“Your Excellency, Governor, I only accept orders from His Majesty the Grand Protector and the Fleet Commander!” The other party still maintained a stern face.
“Huh, isn’t your Grand Protector the Imperial filial son? From the Emperor to the Prime Minister, to the Eight Elector Kings, to the Fourteen Grand Electors, they all seem to be greater than your Grand Protector. You dare not listen to their orders? Are you trying to rebel?” Elinore asked in surprise.
“You!”
Colonel Mo Xu was furious, his eyes practically spitting fire, like a cat whose tail had been stepped on… Uh, it’s hard to tell if that’s a metaphor or literal anymore.